In 1989, with the use of checkoff dollars, the National Pork Board developed the Pork Quality Assurance (PQA) program, a producer education and certification program to reduce the risk of violative animal health product residues in pork.

Agricultural Modeling and Training Systems, developer of ruminant nutrition modeling software, has announced the addition of a new software platform, AMTS.Cloud, and has updated the version of their nutrition software, AMTS.Cattle.Professional to version 3.4.4.

Fat Red Couch, a developer of family-friendly apps, has released a new interactive children's app about a dancing Ayrshire cow. The story, titled "Prancing, Dancing Lily," was inspired by author Marsha Diane Arnold’s childhood growing up on a dairy farm.

Click here to download a pdf of the latest Dairy Checkoff in Action provided by Dairy Management Inc.™ (DMI) PD

Last September, the management board for Dairy Management, Inc. voted in the majority to endorse the spending of check-off dollars by the National Dairy Board to cover the cost of third-party verification for the National Dairy FARM Program. The FARM program is a nationwide voluntary program, administered by the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) that addresses dairy animal well-being. It requires dairy farms to follow animal care guidelines and undergo an on-farm evaluation conducted by a trained professional.

• Dairywoman Irene Osborne, who operates Santee-Acres in Millerstown, Pennsylvania, is a new addition to the All-American Dairy Foundation Board of Trustees. • Reinke Manufacturing Company, Inc. has recognized Farmore of Idaho, based in the town of Jerome, as one of the five highest selling dealers in the Northwest territory. Farmore of Idaho also received the Gold Reinke Pride Award.

The Oregon Dairy Products Commission has launched the Oregon Dairy Export Consortium, a collaborative initiative with the goal of increasing the volume and value of the state’s dairy product exports. The commission developed the effort in close cooperation with the Oregon Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Marketing and Development Program and several organizations and government agencies.

Click here to download a pdf of the latest Export Assistance Watch update, provided by Cooperatives Working Together. PD